Generally, in psychology, self is the sense of personal identity and of who we are as

individuals.

Self as Cognitive Construct

(psychology)

William James (Father of American Psychology): I and Me

Self-having two aspects “I” (the thinking, acting, and feeling self) and “Me” (physical
characteristics as well as psychological capabilities that makes who you are). I-Self is
concerned with the self that knows who he/she is while Me-Self is concerned with the experience
of the self (empirical self).

Carl Rogers (Theory of Self/ Person-centered Theory) (Self Concept)

Carl Rogers's theory of personality also used the same terms, the "I" as the one who acts and
decides while that "me" is what you think or feel about yourself as an object.
-Person-centered Theory: each person has the capacity and desire for personal growth and
change (lahat ng ginagawa or kinikilos natin ay dahil sa sarili natin).
-He proposed the Self-Concept.
Difference between Identity and Self-Concept

Identity Self-Concept
-composed of personal characteristics, social -what basically comes to your mind when you
roles, and responsibilities, as well as affiliations. are asked about “who are you”.(tingin mo sa
sarili)

Hobbies Perceive
behavior,
abilities, and
unique
characteristics
Physical Likened to
Characteristic Age Self-worth,
IDENTITY Self- the soul or
s Self-Image, “Freud’s
Ideal Self Concept
Psyche”

influence by our
Name childhood
experiences and
evaluation by
others
THREE COMPONENTS OF SELF-CONCEPT (actually hindi lang three, involve din self-worth etc.)

●Self-Image: the way you see and think about yourself

●Ideal Self: self you aspire or want to be
● Self Esteem: our own positive or negative perception or evaluation of ourselves
(Theories generally see the self and identity as mental construct created and recreated in
memory. Current researches point to the frontal lobe of the brain as the specific area in the
brain associated with the processes concerning the self)

Sigmund Freud
-Mental processes and one’s behavior is the result of the interaction between the I.D, EGO and
the SUPEREGO. (interaction between these three reflects our personality or behavior)

Reason why Self and Identity Are Social Product:

1. We do not create ourselves out of nothing.
2. Whether you like to admit it or not, we actually need others to affirm and reinforce who we
think we are, we also need them as reference points about our identity.
3. What we think is important in our social or historical context. (you can be acknowledged by
others, nagiging makabuluhan ang pamumuhay mo sa mundo)

Johari’s Window (Joseph Luft and Harry Ingham)

Information about you that both you and others Information about you that you don’t know but
know others do know

Information about you that you know that Information about you that neither you and
others don’t know others know

Two types of self that we can be aware:

Private self- your internal standards and private thoughts and feelings.
Public self- public image commonly geared toward having a good presentation of yourself to
others. (anong image napoportray mo sa ibang tao)
SELF- AWARENESS may be positive or negative depending on the circumstances and our next
course of action. It can keep you doing something dangerous. It can be too much that we are
concerned about being observed and criticized by others. It is also known as self-consciousness.
(you can tend to hide yourself if you are so aware to the point that you are concern about
what others think of you)
 INDIVIDUATION- loss of individual self-awareness and individual accountability in
groups. (Nakakalimutan mo sarili mo pag kasama mo ang specific na group and na gegeneralize
din ng ibang tao ang isang specific group na same same daw ng personality)

A lot of people will attune themselves with the emotions of their group and because the large
crowd also provides some kind of anonymity. We may lessen our selfcontrol and act in ways
that we will not do when we are alone.

SELF-ESTEEM- positive or negative perception or evaluation of ourselves

-One of the ways in which our social relationship affects our self-esteem is through social
comparison. According to the social comparison theory, we learn about ourselves, the
appropriateness of our behaviors, as well as our social status by comparing aspects of ourselves
with other people

SOCIAL COMPARISON
DOWNWARD SOCIAL COMPARISON
(looking to people below us)
-more common type of comparing ourselves
with others.
-we create a positive self-concept by comparing
ourselves with those who are worse off than us.
By having the advantage, we can raise our self-
esteem.
UPWARD SOCIAL COMPARISON
(looking to people above us)
-comparing ourselves with those who are better
off than us.
-While it can be a form of motivation for some,
a lot of those who do this actually felt lower
self-esteem as they highlight more of their
weakness or inequities.

SOCIAL COMPARISON also entails what is called self-evaluation maintenance theory, which
states that we can feel threatened when someone performs us, especially when that person is
close to us. Take note that this occurs not only between individuals but also among groups.
Thus, if a person’s group is performing better and is acknowledged more than the group, then his
self-esteem may also be heightened. Some things can be done to get rid of negative effects of
social comparison:
FIRST- we distance ourselves from that person or redefine our relationship with them.
SECOND-reconsider the importance of the aspect or skill in which you were out performed.
LASTLY-strengthen our abilities and resolve to improve that certain aspect of ourselves.
NARCISSISM- trait characterized by overly high self-esteem, self-admiration, and self-
centeredness (we become narcissistic when attempt to increase or maintain self-esteem).
ROSENBERG SCALE- test and measurements for self-esteem.

A good life is a process not a state of being. It is a direction not a destination.